Kevin Gregg - (Source:AP)
Filed:March 30th, 2009
Manager Lou Piniella named Kevin Gregg as the Cubs closer to start the season Sunday, relegating Carlos Marmol to setup status with the news.
For the record, quotes like this are never what I want to hear from my closer in public, as Marmol gave when asked if his delayed spring start affected the decision:
"I don't think it would've made a difference. They knew what they were going to do before I got here. That's why I say there's not competition."
Now, I don't know how you select Marmol over Gregg in any practical setting coming out of camp. Gregg is not only the experienced closer, and been able to work with Larry Rothschild closely all camp, but has been absolutely lights-out to boot.
Marmol was shaky in the WBC, shaky in Spring Training games, and I've not gotten the sense that he's grabbed the leadership reins, as is required to effectively operate in that role. That alone should make the issue something of a non-story.
But the worst part is, it makes sense -- even if this wasn't the case.
I know most tend to think that's it's purely a matter of who is better than who here, and maybe they're right. Personally though, I wonder if the inability to find a second solid late-inning man out of the Vizcaino/Gaudin/Hart/Samardzija camp sealed Marmol's fate.
Say what you will about arm overuse, but the ability of Marmol to go two innings becomes even more important when you don't have a couple of guys that you as a manager have confidence in to work the eighth inning. If one of those guys mentioned had a great camp, then maybe you do things different. But none made a name for themselves, leaving the Cubs to be flexible in looking for the most effective bridge to the closer possible.
A couple of rubber-armed relievers like Aaron Heilman and Marmol paired together allows a manager a trusted bridge from the sixth to the ninth, with each able to work multiple innings, and often on consecutive days. It's not perfect, but hopefully starting the season that way allows you extra time to see if someone like Gaudin or Vizcaino can return to form, without having to risk high-pressure situations finding out.
Here's the good news though. There's no more volatile position in sport than closer, with the exception of NFL quarterback. As the quote goes, "You're in till you're not." Carlos should have ample opportunities to reinsert himself into the closer's spot over the course of a 162-game season, and I fully expect him to do so at some point this year. In the meantime, taking the diatribes down a notch would probably go a long way into convincing the Cubs -- and more importantly, the players -- that's he's that leader that they need him to be.
Filed:March 28th. 2009
Kosuke Fukudome (Cubbie Nation/file)
I have to tell you, I'm not always fond of Spring Training. Aside from the fact that I think it's normally about a week too long, and the coverage much too spotty for consumption, my interest in watching "prospects" ranks just behind my feelings about rookies. And you know what I think of them.
But it was with great interest that I caught the Cubs-White Sox game Friday afternoon, as it featured the first spring appearance of Kosuke Fukudome. And even better, it was exactly as Lou intends to use him; in center field, and hitting second -- even if in this case it was against the left-handed Clayton Richard. The result? Shaky.
I suppose that you could find some comfort in the fact that he did go 1-4 on the day, before exiting the game in favor of Joey Gathright. And that the hit came against Richard, giving at least some temporary hope that strict platoon with Reed Johnson might not be required.
Personally, I was happy to see him staying in the box better on the breaking balls, and not flinching on inside heat as much, which Sox relievers looked all too happy to work him over with.
But Richard pitched what may have been the worst performance by a starter in a Cactus League game that I've personally seen in some time, getting pulled after only 1/3 inning of work, so I'm not sure if a soft liner over the second baseman's head against him counts for much. And while his range in center looked good, losing a Josh Fields ground-rule double in the sun didn't make me feel better about the experiment.
Manager Lou Piniella says he wants to find Fukudome more at-bats. After watching his .200 performance in the WBC -- with no extra-base hits -- I'd be thinking hard about letting him play everyday up until camp breaks.
Filed:March 25th, 2009
Wrigley Field (Cubbie Nation/File)
An interesting blurb crossed my desk this morning, with news that a week after suggesting otherwise, Cubs chairman Crane Kenney told a group in Florida that the club would seek to increase the number of night games at Wrigley Field, from 30 to 50. The article in its entirety is here.
I can't think of many things more counter-productive from a marketing standpoint than the Cubs crossing the magical halfway point on night games. You know, the point in which you're past 41 games played at night, and you go from a special team that plays day games, to everyone else, who happens to play a few in the afternoon. I mean, when you consider that the bulk of weekend games are played in the afternoon, you're really talking about playing everything else in the evening at that point -- past the rare businessman's special through the summer.
There are just certain things that you associate with Wrigley, and you want it that way to not only make it a ballpark, but a destination spot for all. Day games are a valuable part of that experience, especially in the summertime, when visitors take in a ball game in the afternoon, and move on to more adult endeavors in the evening. It's a huge part of why fans come; they see that party like setting in the summer on TV, and they want in. At 50 night games, it's a big knock off the luster of the park.
I mean, really. Naming rights were discussed, and still not completely taken off of the table. The ivy has been "decorated" with signage, for an underwear peddler, no less. Bleachers are sponsored, and now day games could be in the rarity. Honestly, if this passes, I say it's time to give up the ghost, ditch the marquee, and start talking new ballpark, because Wrigley will be dead -- or at least dying, as we know it.
And don't get me started on the neighbors, who contrary to the opinions of others, did not all sign up to have their neighborhood turn into a perennial theme park.
Sure, the building owners surrounding the park, and the bars on Clark St. will take it anyway that they can get it, but they're plenty of real neighbors -- and I know plenty -- that just want to be able to run some errands, or doze off to sleep on a Tuesday night without having a few dozen drunks stumble past their window.
Some say that they want the crowds and energy, and that's why they came. Plenty came because the rent is cheap(er), singles and young couples are abundant, there are plenty of people under 35, and the neighborhood is vibrant. And it still doesn't mean that they want to fight an extra 40,000 people on the Red Line, and in the streets just to get home from work.
Now, I get the wishes of the players; I really do. One need only look to last season, in which the Cubs played in Colorado mid-week, flew to Washington for a weekend set, and as I recall then back to Wrigley, with not so much as a day off to realize that the schedulers at MLB are certifiable, and they're probably losing some competitive advantage by the day games. So, let me make a couple of suggestions as a potential alternative.
1) Increase the night games to 35. I appreciate compromise, and perhaps those games could be aggregated toward the end of summer, and during the stretch run. There are plenty of off-days earlier in the season anyway, so take them when they're needed most -- and when people are most tolerant of the increased noise and traffic.
2) Ditch those games before 2:05. Seriously, retiring the 1:05 games in favor of a few more 3:20 could be a good compromise for the bulk of that remaining 15-game difference. The luster of the ballpark remains intact, the Cubs move closer to a traditional schedule, and everyone is cleared out by after dinner for the locals.
3) Lean on MLB. Face it, bad scheduling is as much a problem as the lack of night games. I know in most towns it's more financially advantageous to play in the evening, but getting a few more games on getaway days started before 5:00 would go a long way toward balancing things out. The Cubs are unique, and while I don't normally believe in practicing favortism. is it really too much too ask for MLB to get you a few more Wednesday afternoon games on the road? Really. It's not an advantage; it acknowledging reality, and adjusting to balance the field.
Here's hoping that the idea dies an awful and abrupt death altogether, but if not, let's hope that a productive compromise can be reached.
Filed:March 23rd, 2009
Micah Hoffpauir (left), with Henry Blanco and Koyie Hill (Cubbie Nation/File)
No, I'm not going to pile on.
I was actually perfectly happy to move on from this issue, and over to something more interesting, like Corey Koskie's comeback attempt. Oh, wait.
But in doing some work for a couple of future pieces, I came upon a comment to my post, "Micah Hoffpauir to Make Opening Day Roster? You can't be serious." It went something like:
Hoffpauir has torn up Spring Training the last two years, and as a Cub's fan I can say that I am sick of watching DLee hit into the easy 6-4-3 double play. If more rest enables him to be the player that he was three years ago then I am all for having Hoffpauir being the person to replace him. Lastly, if Hoffpauir is not on the team who do you recommend as the back up first baseman?.
Touché Rodney. First base is a big problem, and one of the biggest challenges that I think Lou Piniella will face this season is keep aging cornermen fresh, especially Ramirez and Lee. Let me share a thought or two with you though. Once you get past the issue of quality starting pitching, about the most important determinant in the success of a ballclub is the quality and depth of a teams' bench.
Now, I know some may talk about table-setters, closers (overrated), and starting lineups as second, but what a versatile, productive bunch of veterans can give you off of a bench is often the difference between October games, and managerial firings. They cover your butt in the case of injuries, fatigue, bad hitting slumps, and yeah, guys who start hitting into too many 6-4-3 double plays.
But when you start looking at good benches, you start talking about players who are veteran (not Micah), athletic (nope), comfortable in a bench role (can't say for certain), versatile (sorry), and proven able to hit major-league pitching (not seeing it). You're looking for someone who can not just spell a Derrek Lee, but any number of guys if needed, and ideally for an extended period of time if required.
There are guys in camp who could fit that role better, and also are having good springs. Andres Blanco is a favorite of mine. I know alot of people are high on Luis Rivas. And frankly, the Cubs could do much worse than German as a 25th man -- where hasn't that man played? All have experience playing numerous positions, and reasonably well at that.
None of these guys seems like the perfect solution though, I'll admit. If I had to look outside the organization, there are some guys that immediately come to mind that might fit the bill as well. Ryan Rayburn of the Tigers may be available. Joe Inglett of the Blue Jays looks like a trade candidate. And I keep hearing chatter about Maicer Izturis. Fine with me. Let's hope that he'd work out better than his brother.
I like Micah. If I were a AL GM, I'd certainly be making calls about him for my bench. Play some DH. Maybe a touch of first. Stick him in the outfield once in a blue moon. Makes sense to me. But this isn't the AL, so the Cubs might be better served finding someone to fill out the roster that can, you know, actually play in the field a bit.
It's moot at this point, as the Cubs have made a commitment to a spot for Micah. But I do hope that when the roster musical chairs start later this week, the Cubs jump in for an upgrade.
Micah Hoffpauir - (Cubbie Nation/file)
Filed:March 16th, 2009
You know, like most Cubs fans I've been mostly confused at many of the Cubs moves made since the end of last season. Whether it was letting Mark DeRosa go for a couple of middling relievers, dumping your closer for a fairly unproven one, choosing to start Mike Fontenot, expecting a fielder to play in 135-plus games -- when he's done so only once in his career -- or thinking that Paul Bako could give you something that Koyie Hill or Mark Johnson couldn't, the Cubs seem to have placed a lot of faith in players not only performing, but excelling in new roles. Well, they've upped the ante with news that manager Lou Piniella has reserved a spot on the 25-man roster for Micah Hoffpauir.
'Hoffpauir's fine. We're going to use him to rest Derrek [Lee] at first base and also use him some in the corner [outfield spots]. Another reason for an extra outfielder, too, is when you rest an outfielder, you need somebody to pick up Hoffpauir [for defense] late in the game.''
'Cuse me? Now, I'm going to put aside for now the question of why Lou wants to advertise why his positions are set three week ahead of Opening Day, with guys like Luis Rivas, Andres Blanco, and So Taguchi playing their asses off for a job. I do that because it's probably more relevant to question the structure and composition of the team.
Will the Cubs be carry less pitchers? Not likely, according to the same published reports. They'll stay at 12, wise given the ineffectiveness of some of the bullpen candidates this spring.
Given that there are already five full-time outfielder in place (Soriano, Fukudome, Bradley, Gathright, Johnson), are the Cubs really able to afford the luxury of six of them, particularly at the expense of the left side of the infield, where there is neither a reasonable replacement to spell Ramirez or Theriot.
And how exactly to you find six outfielder at-bats? It's certainly nice to spell Soriano and Bradley early in the season, but there are plenty of off-days in the first six weeks, means someone languishes on the bench. That's probably Gathright, making that signing even more dubious.
All this is before one even asks the question of whether or not Micah is a suitable pinch-hitter off the bench. I haven't seen it.
I know that Lou likes the guy alot, and I respect the way that he makes a commitment to his players. Here's the thing though. Hoffpauir is not a professional hitter, and he should hope to have the career of Daryle Ward, the player he replaces. Instead, Micah is a big slugger, with holes in his swing, and contact issues.
Now, you can get away with that in some instances, especially if you're starting a few times a week to keep your timing crisp, and inflate your stats a bit off of weaker starters. But in the late-innings of most games, Micah can expect to see guys who not only have popping fastballs, but can spot sliders on a dime, much to his detriment. Premier relievers who have no problem putting it low and inside consistently, which still looks to be his weakness.
And not to put too fine a point on it, but his .231/.286/.231 line as a pinch-hitter would seem to prove this out.
Bottom line, Micah as a pinch-hitter is a square-peg, round-hole scenario on a team with a growing number of them. These things usually have a nice way of working themselves out after the first couple of months, but in my opinion this move looks to cost the Cubs early while they come to realize it.
Filed:March 12th, 2009
Kosuke Fukudome (Cubbie Nation/File)
Manager Lou Piniella continued the Cubs strong commitment to Kosuke Fukudome this week, by announcing that all is well, and Kosuke should expect to hit second in the lineup to start the season for Chicago. Fukudome was in Arizona this week for a Cubs-Japan exhibition game today, which Japan won 3-2. He went 1-4 by the way, proving that he can at least hit Cubs pitching. I kid. I kid.
Piniella gave the news to reporters Tuesday, and when asked about Fukudome, replied specifically:
"We're going to try it initially with Soriano and Fukudome, one-two, against right-handed pitching and see how that works. I think that'll work quite well."
I agree, and think that this is good news for a number of reasons. Fukudome in 2008 was probably the most ill-suited hitter in the five hole this side of Jose Vidro, and while paradoxically he performed well there to start the season, I was always of the opinion that the alterations in his game required to leverage a high-RBI spot in the lineup at least contributed to his 2008 downfall.
It's just not his game; at all. No, Kosuke is a bit more Ichiro than Matsui, with a little more thump. Work counts. See pitches. Get on base. Move runners along. Those are the things that a Fukudome can do to best serve a team. Do I still think he can pop 10-15 homers a season? I do, but it's when you put him in a position to go with the flow during an at-bat as opposed to "How can I drive in this runner?" that I expect to see him have the greatest results. With a walk-first mentality, and a great ability to handle the bat, I would consider second in the order about the perfect spot to maximize his natural talents.
Almost as important, this also relegates Ryan Theriot to the bottom of the order, where he is most likely to excel. Theriot -- who does little particularly well -- should see the benefit of plenty of work-arounds and outright free passes ahead of the pitcher, and expect the Cubs to take advantage of his speed not only to give them some options to manufacture runs, but provide greater RBI opportunities for Alfonso Soriano, without having to actually move him off the lead-off spot.
I tend to think that his Ryan's high OBP was a bit of an anomaly last season, but I thought the same about that .326 figure in 2007. I expect him to find himself somewhere in the middle during his career, and the eight spot should help ensure that, if only artificially.
Further, this does give the Cubs the balanced lineup that they've been trying to achieve this off-season, creating a likely lineup against right-handed pitching that looks something like:
Soriano
Fukudome
Lee
Ramirez
Bradley
Soto
Fontenot
Theriot
Pitcher
It's not perfect, but from a balance standpoint, markedly better than last season. Consider me high on this move.
Oh, and just as an aside, did anyone else catch this? It's not a joke. You know, when your favorite despot is blogging baseball, it really must be spring.
Rich Harden - (Cubbie Nation/file)
Filed:March 11th, 2009
Cubs starters just continue to look sharp this spring, as Rich Harden checked in Tuesday with two scoreless innings of work in his Spring Training debut. The Cubs used the solid performances by him, as well as Ryan Dempster and Aaron Heilman to beat the Mariners 8-1.While the Cubs bullpen continues to be a work in progress, Cubs starters are looking sharp and ready to start the season. Harden delivered a quick, 27-pitch effort, with little ill affects after.
"My command was a little off, but I was throwing strikes, I felt great, I felt strong. I couldn't ask for more."
Jeff Samardzija
Filed:March 6th, 2009
Catch the Vegas games?I did, and I won't even begin to tell you how nice it was to sit down, grab something cold, and catch a couple of baseball games on TV. It almost felt like summer for a moment. The Cubs lost both games in the pair against the White Sox at Cashman Field, 7-6 & 4-3. While there was little of note for the Cubs in the losses, one thing that certainly stood out was the performances of Jeff Samardzija and Aaron Heilman, both candidates for the fifth-starter slot.You know, rarely do you have an opportunity to gauge a position battle so closely, with Aaron Heilman taking the mound less than 12 hours after Jeff, facing most of the same hitters as from the night before. And I have to say, the contrast was stark.When I heard at the Cubs convention that Jeff Samrdzija was told to come to camp ready to start, I guess I had a vision of what we might expect. Perhaps a bit more mature. A little more command. Maybe even a nice third pitch from him; you know, something to at least show hitters.What I saw -- for the second consecutive start -- was a very unpolished rookie. The fastball looked as laissez-faire as ever, his breaking pitches didn't appear close to major-league grade, and personally I thought he was still going to the high fastball way too often on hitters.He didn't have a good night Wednesday, giving up three runs in his three innings of work. I still haven't seen a good multi-inning start out of him -- either Cactus League or the majors. It's early in the spring, I know. But the effort more than the results right now are what's troubling me.Aaron Heilman on the other hand threw three shutout innings Thursday afternoon, the second consecutive outing in which he's gone scoreless. It was a good performance, even if he didn't look nearly as sharp as his stats may have you believe.But man, I can see why he drove Mets fans nuts. Nice fastball, and a real good change. But he will dance around and nibble at hitters to the point of frustration. I got to believe that by the second time through the order, this is someone that you can settle in on, and really start lighting up as a batter, once you can see a few of those fastballs. Give him credit for being something of a battler, and making good pitches when he has to, but Heilman as a starter? Don't see it.Here's the thing though. It took about two innings from both to see why Sean Marshall has become the front-runner for the last spot in the rotation. And barring some team deciding to write off their season early and make a good starter available in trade, it makes a great deal of sense.In the meantime however, while Aaron Heilman most certainly has a spot on the Opening Day roster, I'm feeling less and less certain about Jeff. Long term, I think he'll be fine. And I tend to agree with the Cubs in that his highest and best use is as a starter. But given that idea, can he really withstand another shaky performance, especially given that the Cubs have middle relief candidates better suited for that role?Frankly, if Samardzija can't find better location on his fastball in his next start, I suspect that the next stop maybe Iowa.
Curt Schilling
Sometimes an idea comes along that makes so much sense that we have trouble grappling with our reactions, even when we know what that it's in our best interest. Yet another example of missing the forest for the trees came along this weekend with news that Curt Schilling has some interest in becoming a Cub. Or a Ray. Or really anyone else likely in either a large market or with a few extra million lying around. According to Curt, he has little concern about the money though, instead interested in a championship contender and someone who has never won a title. I'll try not to remind David Whitley too loudly that the Cubs have actually, you know, won a championship.
"The challenge would be in a place like Tampa Bay or Chicago," Schilling said.